Spoleto Buzz

No sword in the head

During the dress rehearsal yesterday (Wednesday) of Monkey: Journey to the West, one of the sword dancers lost his grip, sending his sword into the orchestra pit. He looked really worried, as did two of the producers, who scrambled over to the pit while everyone else carried on to see what the damage was.

By the looks of it, no one was hurt. Last night, as I was leaving the opening of Amistad at the Memminger Auditorium (more on that in a minute), I came across a group of pit musicians and chorus singers from both Monkey and La Cenerentola having a post-performance drink at Vickery's on Beaufain Street.

According to the Monkey musicians, the sword, which appears to be made of plastic (but still), merely glanced one of the cellists. No damage at all. Which is fortunate. There are already enough strange creatures running around the stage for Monkey. No need for another, especially a cellist with a sword through her head.